Health Care Compact

The Health Care Compact is an interstate compact proposed by the Health Care Compact Alliance, a section 501(c)(4) organization that does not disclose its funders.

The Health Care Compact Alliance
The Alliance does not disclose its funders because it "respects the wishes of its donors to keep their identities confidential," but they claim not to "solicit or accept donations from any political party, pharmaceutical company or health insurance company." The Chairman of the Board is Eric O'Keefe, a private investor from Wisconsin, chairman and CEO of the Sam Adams Alliance and on the boards of Institute for Humane Studies, the Center for Competitive Politics and Wisconsin Club for Growth. The Vice Chairman is Leo Linbeck III, president and CEO of Aquinas Companies and co-founder and chairman of the advisory board of the Rice Education Entrepreneurship Program. Also an Officer of the Board is Michael Barnhart, the President of Sunshine Review.

The Compact
The Health Care Compact Alliance claims the Health Care Compact would restore "authority and responsibility for health care regulation to the member states (except for military health care, which will remain federal), and provide... the funds to the states to fulfill that responsibility." It would keep the primary responsibility for regulation of health care in each member state, which state could then suspend and supercede federal healthcare regulations. Funding would come from the federal government in the form of mandatory spending not subject to annual appropriations and would be "based on the federal funds spent in their state on health care in 2010."

State Legislative Activity
Georgia became the first state to make the Health Care Compact state law on April 20, 2011. An Atlanta Journal-Constitution article calls it "a measure that could make it possible for them to avoid implementation of the federal health care law" but notes that, "since any compact requires congressional approval, many see Georgia's move as largely symbolic." Georgia lawmakers passed the compact law but "never took a floor vote on a bill to begin planning for a Georgia-run insurance exchange" mandated by the Federal health care law "after tea party activists raised last-minute objections" to such a bill proposed by Governor Deal.

Arizona passed a Health Care Compact Bill, but it was vetoed by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, who said the law, SB 1201, "violates the separation of powers requirement established by Article 3" of the Arizona Constitution and worried it "would result in additional fiscal challenges for our health care system."

The Tennessee state House Health Committee is preparing to vote on a Health Care Compact bill, and in the meantime, an unidentified group has been making automated telephone calls to senior citizens misrepresenting the AARP position on the bill. "The robo-calls indicate that AARP has new information about the bill, HB 369, and urges seniors to ask their representatives to support it." The Tennessee AARP advocacy director, Shelly Courington, responded, "We do not support the Health Care Compact, and for someone to be sending out robo-calls saying that we do is a very serious concern."

The North Dakota House of Representatives failed to pass the Interstate Freedom Health Care Compact, with opponents on both sides of the aisle.

A Health Care Compact bill has passed the House of Representatives and a Senate committee in Montana; has been proposed in the Texas congress; has passed the Missouri House; and has passed the Oklahoma Senate and a House panel. The Oklahoma House sponsor of Senate Bill 722, Rep. Glen Mulready, "said he agreed to sponsor the bill after he heard a presentation on the subject while attending a meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council in Washington."

Contact Information
Health Care Compact Alliance 3901 Courtland Circle Alexandria, VA 22305 Phone: (877) 710-5992 Email: healthcarecompact@gmail.com Web: http://healthcarecompact.com/